Frosted Christmas Cookies

with Keith Dunlop

Transcript: Frosted Christmas Cookies

Hi, I'm Keith Dunlop and welcome to About.com. Today I'm going to show you how to make frosted Christmas cookies. They're always the first to disappear in my family.

Ingredients for Christmas Cookies

To make these Christmas cookies, you'll need:

• 1 1/2 cups softened butter
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• some cookie cutters
• a roll of parchment paper

Ingredients for Frosting

And for the frosting, you will need:

• 8 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• about 2 cups powdered sugar

Make the Christmas Cookie Dough

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until you have a smooth, creamy mixture. Beat in your eggs and your vanilla.

Then stir in your flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill your dough in the fridge for at least one hour.

Roll and Cut the Cookie Dough

After your dough has chilled, preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Measure out a piece of parchment paper so that it fits your cookie sheet, and roll your dough until it's about a quarter inch thick.

A handy tip is that instead of using flour to keep your dough from sticking, use confectioners sugar. It performs the same exact function, but it actually makes your dough that much sweeter.

Cut into shapes with your cookie cutters, and peel up the excess dough, leaving the shapes behind. When you have a full sheet of cookies, place them in the oven and bake for 6 to 8 minutes.

Make the Frosting for the Christmas Cookies

While your cookies are baking, you can make the frosting. First, melt the butter in the microwave -- about 30 seconds should do it.

Add the rest of the ingredients, and whisk until they're well combined. If the frosting is too watery, just add a bit more sugar until it thickens up.

If you're into seasonal colors, separate some of the frosting into another bowl and add a few drops of food coloring.

Frost the Christmas Cookies

After six to eight minutes, remove your cookies from the oven and transfer them to a cooling rack or a cool, flat surface and let them rest for about 10 minutes.

Once they've sufficiently cooled, you can frost them. I like a lot of frosting, so I pretty much just cover the cookie!

At this point, your cookies just need to sit for a little while the frosting sets – about 10 minutes or so. These cookies are great, and the recipe yields about two dozen cookies, depending on how big you make them.

Thanks for watching. To learn more, visit us on the Web at about.com.

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